I will admit, I was a bit underwhelmed by Nintendo’s E3 2011 showing of the Wii U. I wasn’t apart of the many confused people who believed the Wii U was an add on tablet for the original Wii, I was apart of the people who liked what they saw but felt it wasn’t enough to get them excited for the new console. But the rumors that are pouring out from then up until now is why I am so excited for the Wii U. In categories, I am going to tell all of the rumors I have heard so far, and you’ll see why I am so excited.

The Games

I can tell that one of the things Nintendo wanted to do for the unveiling of the Wii U at E3 2011, was show that the Wii U had full third party support. What they showed may have been games that’s coming out soon on current generation consoles, and running on the engine of current consoles like PlayStation 3. I know alot of people were pissed about that, but I loved it. To me, it was the highlight of the Wii U showcase. Seeing that big names like Ubisoft, Namco Bandai, EA, and etc having games already in the making for the console was a very good sign. And I don’t want to forget to mention that games like Dragon Quest X, Pikmin 3, and a new Smash Bros have been confirmed for the Wii U. For a full list of all announced Wii U games, please click the following link: IGN’s Wii U Games List.

There have also been rumors going around that several games are currently in the works for Wii U, one being a Teenaged Mutant Ninja Turtles game from the makers of Batman: Arkham city (ROCKSTEADY Games). Built around the story of the 90’s cartoon, with Shredder, Krang, Bebop, and Rocksteady (Pun) included. Also based on an recent acticle, it looks like Retro Studios maybe working on a new StarFox game for the Wii U. Retro Studio’s last games were the Metriod Prime Series and Donkey Kong Returns, and those games were amazing, so I’m hoping ths rumor is true. And the big rumor is that Shigeru Miyamoto, creator of the Mario and Zelda games, is working on a new original game, which he is pretty much calling Nintendo’s next “big hit”.

The Online

The online features for the Wii U is the number one thing I was worried about since Nintendo announced the console. But all those worries were dead and gone when I heard about Nintendo Network. This is not a rumor, it has been confirmed that Nintendo Network is Nintendo’s very own service similar to X-Box Live and PSN, but made for the 3DS and Wii U. So far, what has been announced is that it will support individual accounts, and it will be possible to download full games on either 3DS or Wii U. What’s really amazing is that months before this information was released, there were rumors saying that Nintendo may partner with Valve’s Steam or EA’s Origin to help with Nintendo’s online features. And the fact that Nintendo is talking about downloadable game distribution, makes me think their maybe a little truth to those rumors. A Steam powered Nintendo service, oh my yes!

The Controller

Gaming wise, I do not like the Wii U’s tablet like controller. Even with all of the news thats coming in about it, I still do not like it, it looks too fat to comfortably game with. Maybe when I finally get my hands on the controller, my opinion on it will change, but for now I am hoping Nintendo has a secondary controller option, similar to the Wii’s Classic Controller Pro but with a wireless feature. But I am very excited about the application side for the controller. It was rumored that the controller will have it’s very own app store, and it was confirmed that it will have NFC (Near Field Communications) capabilities. Meaning the controller can read and write data from cards, figurines, and other compatable devices.

The Surprises

More than anything, I can’t wait to see what surprises Nintendo has up there sleeves. There was a recent article with Yoshinori Ono, producer of the Street Fighter games, who has had time working with the Wii U’s developing kit. He was quoted saying “What we saw last E3 is not a reflection of everything this console is able to offer,” he also says “We have been trying development kits and some of its new characteristics will improve its possibilities. It isn’t something like Kinect or other similar accessories, it’s something different.” I honestly can’t wait to see what Nintendo has in store. If it’s anything like what the 3DS has been doing lately, which have been impressing me more and more, then I expect only good things.

Also, there are still rumors and other reports still popping up concerning the Wii U. I suggest keeping an eye on MyNintendoNews.com, it’s a great source for Nintendo news.

Okay X-Box fanboys and girls, before you put on your rage hats, let me say that this is not a rant nor am I bashing on X-Box. I am just telling my reasons why I haven’t and why I don’t plan on getting an X-Box; 360 or otherwise.

NEW MOON

It used to be that the only current generation gaming console I owned was the Nintendo Wii, and at a time, I was content with that. But then I noticed that updates to my favorite fighting games were coming out (games like Street Fighter 4, and Tekken 6), and I could clearly see that they would never see the light of day on the Nintendo Wii. So I thought, like many other Wii only owners I bet, it was about time to get an HD console, but which one? I believe it was sometime during 2010, I looked at what both X-Box and PS3 had to offer.

ECLIPSE

Both systems were appealing, and even though many PS3 owners bad mouth the fact that you have to pay for online on X-Box (X-Box LIVE), it didn’t really bother me. I think it’s 60 dollars a year; that’s really not that bad to me, it’s pretty low and what you get for it is well worth it. What made me in the end make me end up getting the PlayStation 3 is it’s exclusive games. The very first games I got when I bought my PS3 (other than StreetFighter 4 , and Tekken 6) was Infamous, Ratchet and Clank: FCIT, and Uncharted 2. And I completely loved them.

BREAKING DAWN

I’m not saying that X-Box doesn’t have anything to offer, it’s just that I wasn’t really interested in them. To me, Dead or Alive was the only game that really had my interest as a game could play on an X-Box. I will admit, the bouncy physics in that game was one of the reasons why I liked that game. Hey, I’m a guy, can you blame me? Some of the other games like Project Gotham Racing, Gears of War, and Halo are games I really didn’t care for.

To me, X-Box doesn’t really give me that unique experience kind of feeling in it’s games. That kind of feeling that when you play a game you can say “I can only get this while playing on this system.” Nor does it have any stand out charaters from X-Box original games, which is sad because it has a develper like Rare on it side. I hate to hear when X-Box get a chance to have an exclusive character on a multiplatform game, and the only name people can think of is Master Chief. But I will admit, Alan Wake is a step in the right direction. The look and style of that game seems like something unique and could be only found on the X-Box. If the X-Box keeps bringing games like this, I might reconsider getting one, but not until then. Tell Rare to get off thier asses and make magic again like they did in the golden N days.

Recently, I have been worried if Nintendo was going downhill. Abandoning their fans, and having a steady string of bad judgement. In the year 2010, things were looking great, bright, and shiny. It was a great year to be a Nintendo fan, we had an awesome E3 that year, and a lot of great games released at that time. There was Sin and Punishment: Star Successor, No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle, GoldenEye 007, Sonic Colors, Donkey Kong Returns, Super Mario Galaxy 2, and the list goes on. Each of the games I mentioned are in my opinion, are great games that must be played if you own an Wii. And the E3 video of all the games coming to the 3DS looked off the chain.

And then came 2011, the year where things started going downhill. The only game to really look forward to on the Nintendo Wii was The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, a game that won’t release until towards the end of the year. The 3DS had a very lackluster release; none of the major titles were release with the system, and some of the promised features weren’t available until a later date. And at E3 2011, the unveiling of the Wii-U had me really worried. The graphics looked like something not far of the PlayStation 3, and most if not all of all the games announced for it are all games that will be available on everything else a year or more before the system even comes out. And the controller for the Wii-U, although its capabilities look amazing, is way too fat! I cant see myself playing any kind of game with a controller that big. And don’t want to forget Nintendo kinda telling the many people of Operation Rainfall, who wanted the localization of multiple japan only games, that “It aint gonna happen.”

There was also this:

But it all not bad news coming out of this year, recently Nintendo announced that the 3DS will be getting a massive price cut, it will soon be on sale for 169.99. And for those who already own the 3DS, there will be an Ambassador Program, where they will receive 20 free game downloads; consisting of 10 classic NES games and 10 classic Gameboy games, most of which will be improved with multiplayer and other features. For more infomation, click here. And it was also announced that the 3DS and the Wii-U will have Downloadable content, and that Wii-U will add GameCube to it’s Virtual Console.

With all of this, I am very worried about Nintendo’s future. Not really for the 3DS, I’m pretty sure that will come out well in the long run, but for the Wii and Wii-U, I don’t know. I have been a Nintendo fan for a long time, when everybody else was jumping ship, I stuck with them through the good times and the worst. Now its starting to look pretty bad, but I’m still sticking with them. I just want the big N to step their game up.

Recently, a lot of my favorite Wii titles are jumping the Nintendo gates, and making their way to it’s competitive HD’s consoles. Games like No More Heroes, Golden Eye 007, and House of the Dead: Overkill. And even though I feel these remakes are like a spit in the face at Nintendo, and are abominations that should have never gone further than topics of conversation for stupid people who don’t own a Wii. I am more lenient on one game, and that’s House of the Dead: Overkill. While some of the other games are games meant to be more in favor to Nintendo Wii (A topic I probably discuss later in a rant that I had cooking for some time now), House of the Dead is just a fun light shooter game.

If you haven’t already played House of the Dead: Overkill, I highly recommend House of the Dead: Overkill Extended Cut. It’s got a very funny story, shooting up zombies/mutants, and it has more F-Bombs than Samuel Jackson can shake a tail feather to, and if you don’t believe me: It’s the truth. And it’s all wrapped up in an nice grind house movie package, with great Co-op I might add. And now it has upgraded graphics, HD, and also bonus content. Will I be getting this game? No, because I hate Wii-makes and I wished they would die. But don’t let that stop you from enjoying this game.

Wii version:

HD Version:

I really enjoyed playing the Wii version of this game, it was hilarious and fun to play with friends on the Co-op modes. I believe the HD version will be a PlayStation exclusive and controlled by the PlayStation Move, and have a lot of extra features. If you already own a Wii and thinking about getting this on that instead of getting the HD version, then thank you.

I said “If this so called new Nintendo console is real, then I’m all for it.” And I am, recent LEGIT websites have confirmed that the new Nintendo console is REAL and is going to be unveiled and playable at the next E3 of this year (2011). And I am excited, as you can tell from my last post, news of the new Nintendo console have been floating around for some time now, and it has left my emotions for it a tug of war for it. Which would also explain my last post. But I can’t wait to see what Nintendo got up their sleeves, I want to see what rumors were true and what weren’t.

Currently, there is buzz, rumors, reports, and whatever else you can call it, on that the folks at Nintendo are going to announce the successor to the Nintendo Wii soon. And to that, I say BULLSHIT!

I’m sorry, but its not like I (or anybody else, for that matter) haven’t heard this before. There was Michael Pachter with his claims about Wii HD (More about Pachter: Click here ), and there was that time when the head of Square Enix, Yoichi Wada predicting that Wii HD was coming soon. And there were tons of other non-creditable news and blog sites telling that “Wii 2 is coming,” or “be prepared for the Wii HD.” And it’s not like Nintendo was egging this on, they have on countless times shot down these claims that a new console was in the works. Iwata, the president of Nintendo himself, even came out and said in his own words “Shut the fuck up, and stop with all these damn rumors!” Well he didn’t say it like that, but I know how to read between the lines.

It’s not like I’m not excited for a new Nintendo console. It’s just like that old say,”Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me eight or more times, shame on me.” And some of news on the system just sounds like its fake. The “Wii 2” is said to be more powerful than both the PS3 and the X-Box, have a tablet like controller that features a touch screen and have the capability to be used as an sensor bar for the Wii remote. Do I need Admiral Ackbar to come explain to you that this is a trap?

If this so called new Nintendo console is real, then I’m all for it. But until Reggie or Iwata come out and confirm it themselves, I’m saying that it’s BULLSHIT. And so, I leave you with links to multiple news sites about this.

Keep a look out for these great games, they are going to be great and they are coming soon. And I didn’t even get them all, there’s still games like Cursed Mountain, Indiana Jones, Sin and Punishment 2, and Punch Out Wii! But theres no date set to those games yet.

So that ends Wii Week, I hope enjoyed it.
Well, back to play House of the Dead Overkill!